This study aims to develop a preliminary model for the content validation of serious games, specifically to assess two cybersecurity games designed for children aged 8-13 years as part of the Erasmus+ project "SuperCyberKids". Using a scoping review of databases from pedagogy, psychology, and computer science, we identified current…

Game based-learning have been widely promoted to overcome the difficulties encountered by beginners to learn programming. However, there are many issues to address for the implementation of game-based learning. Indeed, game-based learning is not limited to adding game elements such as rewards to a learning situation, but it rather consists of…

This study examines the effectiveness of a collaborative support method in enhancing programming learning outcomes in a serious game. The game Code Hasp was developed to facilitate the comparison between two support methods, worked examples and a collaborative peer support approach. A total of 111 elementary school students participated, divided…

Educational games have gained widespread interest among teachers and researchers across various fields due to their capacity to engage students, foster active participation, and improve learning outcomes. In the context of computer programming, which demands significant cognitive effort, the use of educational games has grown substantially. While…

Gamification has proven to be effective in engaging and encouraging people to work towards and achieve goals. Many students struggle to focus on schoolwork, due to a lack of interest, lack of understanding, or other factors unique to the student. Applying gamification elements to education can help engage these students in learning their course…

This paper presents a new developed methodology for teaching and learning subjects that although are very important in the modern digital society are neglected in high school education programs: cybersecurity and cyber safety. A Study among the EU high schools in 2021-2022 revealed that computer science teachers are not regularly upgrading their…

This research aimed to develop and evaluate a gamified learning game using the Kid-Bright board to teach introductory coding skills for controlling lamps and fans to 12th-grade students. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, involving the design and development of the game based on gamification principles, followed by an evaluation by three…

Learning analytics methods have proven useful in providing insights from the increasingly available digital data about students in a variety of learning environments, including serious games. However, such methods have not been applied to the specific context of educational escape rooms and therefore little is known about students' behavior while…

This article presents a systematic literature review on escape rooms as a didactic tool for teaching and learning programming. The review examined the programming topics and languages addressed, the educational levels targeted, evaluation methods used and key design elements such as format, duration, location and narrative structure.…

The game-based learning approach to developing students' computational thinking (CT) current has received attention from researchers. However, the compatibility between games and instruction is often insufficient to accommodate the entertaining and educational nature of the curriculum entirely, and the benefits of game-based learning could be…

Recently scientists have underscored a significant mismatch between the latest theoretical Computational Thinking conceptualizations as an upcoming literacy that goes beyond computer science, and its operationalizations in current empirical research and designs, which are limited to coding-centred and domain-specific tools and approaches. To…

There is substantial evidence that incorporating interactive environments for game-based instruction has a significant potential to support the development of computational thinking and programming skills in primary education students. However, it is not clear whether a simulation game (SG) with different user interface elements, created via…

This study examines whether game-based learning can be used as a promising strategy for fostering students' engagement and motivation. Researchers investigate students' perceptions of the effectiveness of three educational games designed to teach cybersecurity in primary schools: an escape room-style game, a treasure hunt game, and a quiz…

Aim/Purpose: The key objective of this research is to examine whether fix-and-play educational games improve students' performance in learning programming languages. We also quantified the flow experiences of the students and analyzed how the flow contributes to their academic performances. Background: Traditionally, learning the first computer…

The purpose of this research is to evaluate the potential of use for computer science course designs (CSCD) created by game-based learning method. Qualitative case study was used as the research design. CSCDs created for Minecraft Education Edition (MinecraftEdu) were examined in the context of various criteria by document analysis method, and…